overcoming
by chocolate eclaire
Summary: jin and his insecurities come into play when he becomes captain


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A/N: if you're starting to think that I'm very unimaginative cos all my girls are named Saeko, you're right. I'm not Japanese, so I have absolutely no idea how to name them. This fic is rather mundane, if I say so myself. It's not coming out the way I want it to… I just had to write this fic after watching the Kainan game----Jin was so very kawaii! And he's so good at shooting too… J 

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Disclaimers: I own nothing to do with slam dunk, only own the girl character..hehe. I'm just a bored student writing fics to relieve stress, so don't sue me!

Part One:

The muffled thumping of basketballs on the gym floor became clearer as they approached.

' Kainan has topped the prefecture for the last 17 years, and we'll make it 18 this year."

Saeko looked up at her guide, a senior named Raine. She spoke with such confidence and assuredness! Did she really think that they would win again? Or did she just take it for granted?

"Do you really think so?" she asked with amusement.

" We don't think so. We know for sure." Raine answered matter-of-factly. " You should see them practise." With that, she opened the door to the gym, and they both peered in.

" Move your butt across the court faster! You want to take over the super rookie position from me, don't you?" a guy with a long, messy, bushy mop of a ponytail was shouting orders at a group of freshmen, who were making shots.

" Kiyota-chan, don't be so harsh on them. Besides, they're only freshmen. Shouldn't you be practising too? " That came from a tall skinny guy with huge eyes and a rather nerdy haircut standing next to him.

" But, Jin-san, they're so lousy! How can they ever hope to be super rookie of the year? Like me! " On saying that, he swelled with pride, like a rooster.

" Kiyota-chan, maybe they're scared off by you. Why don't you go and practise your shooting while I take care of them?" Jin smiled and shoved Kiyota off.

Saeko watched with amusement. "Who is that guy? The one with the bushy hair? He seems so full of himself."

" That's Kiyota Nobunaga. He _is _full of himself." The one who had answered her question was the tall skinny guy with a nerdy haircut. He had overheard her and responded with a shy smile.

" Oh, I see. I'm Saeko. I've just transferred school. You are…? "

" Jin Soichiro. I'm the captain."

As they shook hands, she was thinking to herself, 'how can this nerdy guy be captain?'

" Say, would you mind being the manager of our team? Our manager graduated last year, and until now, we haven't found a replacement."

" Ah, what does a manager do? I know little about basketball."

" Oh, you're supposed to keep track of our points and fouls during the game, stuff like that. If you're interested, I'll tell you more."

" Oh, I am! But I have to finish looking at the school first. Can I meet you here later?"

" Ok. We'll probably still be here practising. If not, I will." He smiled at her and turned to go.

She smiled back and looked at Raine. The senior smiled down at her. 

" Man, am I glad that the basketball team has a manager now. When they didn't, it was quite bad…" she shook her head. " Shall we continue? This is the canteen…"

After the tour was finished, Saeko hurried back to the basketball courts. 'Goodness, it's quite late already! Will anyone still be there?' She hoped that Kiyota was. She did find him rather cute, and definitely very amusing. 

The gym was quiet, and it was only when she went closer that she heard the thump of a lone basketball. Peeking in, she saw Jin practising his shooting alone. 

Holding her breath, she watched as he picked up a ball, then after bouncing it lightly on the floor, took aim and released it. It flew in a beautiful arc and landed in the net without even touching the rim. 

" Beautiful!" she couldn't help but applaud.

On hearing the sudden sound, he turned, startled. It was her. She was waiting for him. Had she seen all his lousy attempts at lay-ups and dunks? She probably was just trying to make him feel better, for she might have guessed that shooting 3 pointers was the only thing he could do. 

He hung his head in shame, blush lines spreading under his eyes.

She didn't notice, and ran to him. " That was beautiful! One of the best 3 point shots I've ever seen! Man, how long have you been practising? I can never get a shot in the hoop, no matter how hard I try! Hey… what's wrong? Are you ok?" she looked at him in concern. " Did I say anything wrong? Why do you look so down? I'd be happy if I were you! Your shots are so beautiful!" 

He slumped down even further, then fell to the floor. 

She was getting worried now. " Jin - sempai! Are you ok?" she knelt down beside him.

" Yeah." The voice was so small and soft that she wasn't sure whether she had heard it. 

" What? Did you say anything?" she looked at him.

" Yeah. I'm ok. Please don't go on any more. " he looked at her with pleading eyes.

She was taken aback, but how could she resist his eyes? 

" Ok, but…"

" No buts. I'm ok. Let's talk about your duties now, shall we?"

She nodded resignedly, and sat down. 

He stared at the floor and began reciting in a monotonous tone. 

" No. " that stopped him in the middle of his recitation.

" No what?" he looked at her.

" No you're not ok. Tell me what wrong! You're hiding something from me." 

" I've got nothing to hide. Besides, I don't have to tell you everything. I didn't even know you until today."

" So? What difference does that make? I know you're not all right, and that you need to tell someone how you feel. Try it. You'll definitely feel better." 

" No! Why are you such a busybody?"

" Jin – sempai, please. It will do you lots of good." It was her turn to look at him with pleading eyes, and he couldn't resist.

" Ok. I'm the captain of Kainan this year, as you know. Kainan has had a winning streak of 17 years in the prefecture, and I can't afford to break the streak. The whole school would be after me. The team would never forgive me and I'd never forgive myself!" he stopped here, unsure of whether to continue, and if he did continue, what was there to say?

" I understand how you must feel. The pressure is tremendous, and you can't let up for a moment. You feel as if there's a pack of hound dogs chasing you, breathing down your neck, waiting for you to slip or fall, then they'll devour you." she shuddered.

He nodded. " The pressure is intense and I hate it! Every morning I wake up and hope that it'll be gone, but it's still there, and it gets worse with each passing day."

" Yeah, and it's the worst just before D-day."

" D-day? "

" My short form for dooms day." She grinned wryly at him, and he grinned back.

" Well, you seem to know exactly how I feel." He put his hands behind his back and leaned back. 

" Of course I would. But how is a long story." 

He bobbed his head. " Stories are almost always long."

The chiming of the bell startled both of them. 

" Gracious! It's already 6 o'clock! And I haven't even told you about the manger's duties yet!"

" So tell me now."

" Ok. You have to … …" 

When he was done, he gave her a form. " If you're really interested, then sign here."

This she did, and then handed the form back to him. " So do you feel better now?"

" Eh? Oh yeah, kind of."

" Told you you needed to talk to someone about it." She looked smugly at him.

" Yes, miss know-it-all." He stood up and offered her a hand, which she accepted.

" Where do you stay? I can walk you home." He offered.

" Nah, it's ok. I can walk myself home. I don't need anyone to take care of me."

" I know you don't, but I'd thought I'd be a gentleman!"

" Fine then! I stay close to the park."

" Me too! Wait a minute and we'll go."

She shrugged her shoulders indifferently. 

" Let's go. My bike's over there."

" You ride a bike? I thought you had to 18 to ride one?"

" Not to ride this one you don't. It's a bicycle, not a motorbike! " he grinned as he unchained his bike and got on it.

" Hey, wait a minute! You expect me to walk while you cycle? That's not very gentlemanly." She pouted.

" Of course not! Get on."

" Huh? What do you mean?"

" Stand on the board and hold my shoulders!" he pointed to the wooden board he had fixed on to the back for Kiyota, who thought it his divine right to demand a free ride from Jin to games.

" Ok… Are you sure it's stable?" she gingerly stepped on it and grasped his shoulders lightly.

" Here we go! Hold on tight!" he pedalled out of the school grounds.

~~~~J L ~~~~~~~~~J L ~~~~~~~~~J L ~~~~~~~~~J L ~~~~~~~~~J L 

A/N: hopes you liked it, I feel that jin is rather ooc, but he's got so little character in the show, it's rather hard to write. Happy new year everyone!


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